Hitomi's New Life
by Dalafanole
Summary: I've reposted this story with a few changes for the better! H? What do you think would happen if Hitomi never came back to Gaia after episode 23 when she said she hated her world and was sent back? Read this and you'll see my version of it. R
1. Chapter 1

Hitomi's New Life  
  
AN - I've removed this story and reposted it because I haven't updated in a while and I want to change a few things. I am hoping to update it more often from now on. I have had a major writers block so I hope you can all forgive me! :'( I hope you all read and review. Now, on with my new and semi-improved fic of "Hitomi's New Life"!  
  
"~~~~~" = spoken words  
  
'~~~~~' = thoughts  
  
Disclaimer - I do not own Escaflowne or any of it's characters!  
  
Chapter 1  
  
~*~"Why can't you think of anything other than fighting?" Hitomi asked Van.  
  
"What are you talking about? This war is to protect you!" Van said looking up to see Hitomi standing on the bridge that leads to the Palas castle.  
  
"I saw it. You enjoy fighting, Van! I don't want you to protect me like that. I hate war. I hate this world!"  
  
"Hitomi!"  
  
"Someone, please send me back! Send me back to my world!" As she said that a bright blue light engulfed her. ~*~  
  
Hitomi abruptly sat up in her bed, her night gown and hair stuck to her body and face from sweating in her sleep.  
  
"Hitomi!" The voices of Van and Allen from her dream still echoed in her head.  
  
It's s been two years since that day on the bridge. And Hitomi now wishes she never left. She ran her fingers through her hair, then fell back, letting her head hit the pillow. She turned her head and looked at the alarm clock next to her on her bed stand.  
  
"Six o'clock." she said out loud. Hitomi got out of bed and walked to the bathroom to take a shower. While she let the cool water run down her body she thought about Gaia, about the war . . . and about Van. Why she left him she doesn't know anymore.  
  
'I wonder if the war's over? If it is, I hope you won, Van.' Hitomi thought, smiling as she remembered his face.  
  
She stepped out of the shower and started getting ready for school. After she put on her school uniform and fixed her hair, she looked at herself in the mirror. Not much has changed about her over the two years she's been back from Gaia. She's the same height and her hair's the same length as it has always been. The only thing that's different is how her body has matured. She has all the curves a woman has now. She's also the captain of the girls track team and a star fighter in her Tai-kwan-do class.  
  
Hitomi left her room and started walking downstairs to the kitchen where her mother was making breakfast. When she was half way down the stairs she was pushed aside as her little brother came running down.  
  
"Mamoru, watch where you're going!" Hitomi yelled as he run out the door. Mamoru is 13 years old now, four years younger than Hitomi.  
  
"Where's Mamoru going in such a hurry?" Hitomi asked her mom.  
  
"He's late for soccer practice." Mrs. Kanzaki answered without looking up from what she was doing. "Did you sleep well?" Mrs. Kanzaki handed Hitomi her breakfast.  
  
"Thanks." Hitomi said as she started to eat. "I had that dream again."  
  
"The one with you on the bridge?"  
  
"Ya, that one."  
  
"You have to stop thinking about it, Hitomi. You have to go on with your life."  
  
"I know, but I still miss them."  
  
"I know you do." Mrs. Kanzaki said before she left the room to continue cleaning.  
  
Mrs. Kanzaki and Hitomi's best friend, Yukari, are the only ones who believed the story of Gaia. Hitomi also told Mamoru but he only makes fun of the story. She also told Amono who says that he believes her but she can tell that he doesn't. And Hitomi's father moved out while she was on Gaia and no ones heard from him since.  
  
Hitomi decided to leave early this morning and run a few laps around the track.  
  
"Mom, I'm leaving. See you after school!" Hitomi called before closing the door behind her. It takes her ten minutes if she walks to school.  
  
While walking, she thought of her time on Gaia. Her hand went up and clutched the tear drop shaped pendant that still hung around her neck. She used to try and use it to get back to Gaia, but to no avail. Once in a while it would glow a faint pink light but that was it.  
  
Hitomi was about half way to school when she stopped in the middle of the side walk. She felt some ones eyes on her, she kept walking.  
  
'Some one's following me.' Hitomi thought as she looked at the pendant that was still in her hand. It was now slightly glowing.  
  
"Oh no!" Hitomi whispered under her breath. Over the two years she's been back home, the only times her pendant has glowed is when she was trying to get back to Gaia . . . . or when she is in danger, like the time it started to glow when she was almost hit by a car.  
  
Soon Hitomi was jogging down the street. But she soon heard footsteps following her from behind. As the foot steps came closer, the pendant grew brighter and Hitomi ran faster.  
  
'Two more block until I'm at school!' Hitomi thought as she turned into an alley which was a short cut to her school.  
  
Breathing hard, Hitomi closed her eyes and continued to run as fast as she could. When she closed her eyes she saw her three stalkers behind her through her mind.  
  
"It's time Hitomi." a familiar voice whispered in her head.  
  
"Folken?" Hitomi asked before she felt herself rising into the air.  
  
'But where's the column of light?' she thought as she opened her eyes to see that she was now a foot in the air, without the light to be seen.  
  
Just then all three of her stalkers tackled her to the ground. Hitomi started to scream but was cut off with a rag being tied around her mouth by one of the stalkers while the other two held her down. When he was done with the rag he stood up, which was when Hitomi saw his face with a burn mark across his face. And his face was the last thing she saw before feeling an emense amount of pain at the back of her head. Then Hitomi's vision went black.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"A bruised and bloodied body of seven-teen year old Hitomi Kanzaki was found in the alley near her high school today at nine o'clock this morning." The woman on TV reported," After being raped several times and being severely beaten, Hitomi Kanzaki was taken to the hospital where she is now recovering from that traumatic experience. Hitomi was still unconscious, from being hit on the head with a glass bottle which was found on the scene. She was found by one of the teachers of the near by high school."  
  
Yukari had to turn off the TV because it was upsetting Hitomi's mother. Yukari, Mrs. Kanzaki, Amono and Mamoru have been in the hospital's waiting room for hours now.  
  
Finally a doctor came in, "You may go see Hitomi now. She's awake. But I recommend not staying long, she needs to rest. All four of them entered Hitomi's room where she was sitting up in bed with bruises and cuts all over her face and body.  
  
"How are you feeling, Hitomi?" Mrs. Kanzaki asked, taking her daughter's hand.  
  
Without saying a word Hitomi started crying, which made her mom and Yukari start crying. Through her sobs, Hitomi told them how scared she was and how she never wants to go through that again.  
  
After a half hour, the four visitors had to leave and Hitomi fell back asleep, thinking about Folken's words, "It's time, Hitomi."  
  
The next morning Hitomi was aloud to go home. Hitomi was really quiet during the car ride back to her house. When she entered the house she ignored her mom's voice completely and went straight up to her room. There she just lied on her bed with her hand on her stomach where one of the stalkers sliced her with a knife.  
  
'Something to remember this experience.' Hitomi thought.  
  
Then her mind wondered back to before she was knock out.  
  
'I swear I was at least a foot and a half off the ground.' Hitomi then got put of bed and stood in the middle of her room. After a couple futile attempts to rise off the ground she gave a frustrated growl. As she did, the drawers of her dresser came flying out of their places, scattering clothes around her room. Hitomi just stood there gazing around her room, afraid to even move.  
  
After a few seconds a familiar blue column of light surrounded her as she was being lifted in the air. At that moment Hitomi's mother opened the door to see what all the noise was. But all she saw was the smiling face of her daughter as she faded away with the blue light.  
  
"At least she'll be happy now" Mrs. Kanzaki said as she closed the door to Hitomi's room and went back down stairs with a smile on her face and a single tear rolling down her cheek.  
  
Hitomi felt a strong pair of arms wrap around her waist as she was traveling through the light before falling unconscious again. One thought in her mind. 'Van I'm back.'  
  
AN - Well, did it suck or not? :P I hope everyone who reads this will review, even if you didn't like it. Ja ne! ^_^ 


	2. Chapter 2

AN - Nothing really to say. . . So, on with the next chapter.  
  
Disclaimer - I do not own any of the Escaflowne characters. But it would be cool if I did though. ^_~  
  
Chapter 2  
  
The strong arms that were around Hitomi's waist before were now gone and she felt herself laying in a soft bed. When she finally opened her eyes she saw that she was in a very big bedroom. As Hitomi looked around she noticed that it was actually quite empty.  
  
All she saw in her new room was the four-poster bed she was laying in, on each side of her bed were two small dressers, to her left was a big balcony and to her right was a door which she guessed led out to the hall. on the other side of the room was a table and a single chair. There was also another opened door to the left of her bed with what she saw was a bathtub inside.  
  
"Ooo, my own bathroom!" Hitomi squealed as she got out of bed. But as she was walking to the bathroom, her arm was pulled back. Looking at her arm, she saw that a rope was tied to her wrist. "What the . . .?" Hitomi's gaze followed the rope and to her surprise the other end of the five foot long rope was tied to one of the posts of her bed.  
  
Hitomi walked back and sat on her bed, working with the knot on her wrist, trying to untie it. But doing so only made the rope tighten, hurting her wrist. After a few more minutes of tightening the knot, Hitomi gave up on that one and tried untying the one on the bed post.  
  
As what felt like hours to Hitomi, but were actually minutes, went by there was no improvement on the knot. Hitomi then started getting really frustrated. Her frustration grew until she couldn't bare it anymore.  
  
"Aaarrrggg!" As Hitomi yelled the air in the room became unsettled and soon there was a huge wind storm in her bedroom, blowing everything in the room all over the place. And just like what happened back in her room on the Mystic Moon, the drawers from her dressers flew out from their places.  
  
As the wind blew on, Hitomi sat on the bed, terror taking over the features on her face as she watched what was going on around her. All the while her pendant was growing brighter and brighter. She was about to scream for help, but then she remembered what happened the last time she did.  
  
'Am I doing this? I can't be, that's impossible!' Hitomi's thoughts were racing through her head so fast, she didn't even notice some one entering the room.  
  
"Hitomi." The sound of the familiar voice saying her name made Hitomi jump. Walking in her room, closing the door behind him, stood the man with spiky blue hair and a tear drop tattoo under his left eye Hitomi knew all too well.  
  
"Folken?" Hitomi asked shielding her eyes from the wind, trying to see. "What's going on? Make it stop!"  
  
"Only you can make it stop. You need to calm down." Folken said in a steady voice.  
  
"Calm down?! How can i calm down when this is happening!?" Hitomi yelled, now getting angry which only made the wind blow harder.  
  
"You're only making it worse by yelling like that Hitomi. Just breath."  
  
Hitomi looked at him skeptically before doing as he said, realizing that he was right about it becoming worse. She took a few deep breaths and eventually calmed down. When she did, the wind storm disappeared.  
  
"You made quite a mess didn't you?" Folken said as he picked up the fallen chair, placed it by Hitomi's bed and sat next to her.  
  
"Folken, where am I? What happened? Why . . ." Hitomi's questions were cut off when Folken placed his human hand on her mouth.  
  
"I'll answer all your questions, but one at a time please." He smiled as he removed his hand from her mouth. Hitomi just looked at him for a second. She's never seen Folken smile before.  
  
"Okay, where am I? Am I in Fanalia?"  
  
"That was two." Folken said smiling again. "But anyway, no you're not in Fanalia. You're on Zaiboch's main floating fortress, the Vione. I brought you here using one of Dornkirk's machines."  
  
"Why? Why are we in Zaiboch, I thought that you were on Fanalia's side?" Hitomi asked bitterly.  
  
"No, I pretended to be on Fanalia's side so I can help you. But you went back to the Mystic Moon before I could."  
  
"I don't need any of your help. If you're going to try to use me as bait to kill Van it won't work!" Hitomi said as she turned her back to Folken.  
  
"And I'm not going to use you to get Van. That's between me and him, you have nothing to do with it. And it looked like you needed my help to calm that wind storm you caused." He said with a smirk in his face. At these words Hitomi looked over her shoulder at him.  
  
"So I did do that." Folken only nodded. "How?"  
  
"You're of Kalafae blood." Hitomi turned around to hear what Folken had to say. "Kalafaes are an ancient race of people who also lived in Atlantis with the Draconians. While Draconians grew wings and possessed the power of Atlantis, they did not possess the magic of Atlantis, the Kalafaes did. Kalafaes have very powerful magical abilities. They are able to control the weather and the elements to their liking. They are able to defy gravity, or fly, and were well known for their ways of destruction.  
  
"While living in Atlantis, the Draconians and the Kalafaes lived in peace. The Draconians allowed the Kalafaes access to their energists, which is why you have one, and in return the Kalafaes shared their knowledge of Gaia and the Mystic Moon. But even though they lived in alliance it was prohibited for them to marry or have any other relationship other than friendship.  
  
"At the destruction of Atlantis, more Kalafaes were destroyed than Draconians so there are only a few left. While the surviving Draconians scattered through out Gaia, the surviving Kalafaes were sent to live on the Mystic Moon. Which is where you're from."  
  
Hitomi sat on the bed with her jaw dropped in amazement. After a few minutes of taking in the information Folken had just given her, Hitomi finally spoke.  
  
"So I'm a descendent of the Kalafae people?' Folken nodded. "And you brought me here, all the way from the Mystic Moon, to tell me this?"  
  
"Yes to tell you. And to teach you how to control you powers."  
  
"Why do you want to teach me? It's not like we're friends, or even allies for that matter."  
  
"There are two reasons why I want to teach you. One, because I want us to be allies, for you to trust me. And two, if you don't know how to control yourself you'll eventually be the cause of the destruction of your world. And without the Mystic Moon hanging above Gaea, Gaea will also be destroyed."  
  
Hitomi stared at Folken with fear in her eyes. "Okay, teach me. But you're a Draconian, how are you going to teach me Kalafae magic?"  
  
"Van's father, King Gaou, is not my father. My Draconian mother, Varie, had an affair with a Kalafae man. Even though it was never meant to be. The result of her affair was me, a half Draconian half Kalafae child. Dornkirk taught me all there is to know about their magic before he died, so I will teach you all I know."  
  
There was an awkward silence as Hitomi saw the shame Folken had for his mother.  
  
"Van doesn't know and nor will he. Understand?" The change of tone in Folken's voice startled Hitomi. She nodded. "Good." His voice calmed. Folken then took out a small knife from his pocket and cut the rope, freeing Hitomi's wrist. Rubbing her raw wrist, Hitomi gave Folken a questioning look.  
  
"Your new home is now the Vione. You may walk around as you please, the only places off limits are the living quarters on this floor. Any other places you may go. If you ever need to talk to me, you can find me in the study hall on the floor below us. When eating you are to sit next to me, the dining hall is also on the floor below us along with the main library and the kitchen.  
  
"I have informed everyone of your stay and they know that you are not an intruder and are not to hurt you. If anyone does try to harm you tell me at once. If you can not find me the Dragon Slayers will help, there is no need to be afraid of them. No one knows about the Kalafaes or their magic. Let's keep it that way."  
  
"Of course." Hitomi said half smiling.  
  
'Maybe it won't be so bad here after all.' She thought.  
  
"When talking about me or to me you are to refer to me as 'Lord Folken'. Otherwise it's just 'Folken' to you. But always refer to Dilandau as 'Lord Dilandau'. I've heard about you standing up to him, just stay out of his way, okay?"  
  
"Okay."  
  
"Good. Now, change into this and come down for lunch. You do not fit in with those clothes." Folken handed Hitomi her new clothes and headed for the door.  
  
"Folken." Folken turned around to hear what Hitomi has to say. "Just because you're training me, doesn't mean I'm on your side. Remember that."  
  
"And you remember that if you try to use your magic against me to get out you will fail. I'm a lot more powerful than you are."  
  
"I know." Hitomi said smiling.  
  
"And who knows, maybe you will decide to join us. But for now, welcome to Zaiboch Hitomi Kanzaki." And before Hitomi could say anything against her deciding to join Folken left the room.  
  
"I guess for now I'm a Zaiboch resident. Sorry Van. I'll see you again some day, I hope." Hitomi said as she started getting changed in to her new clothes.  
  
AN - Well there it is. The second chapter of my story. If you read, please review. Thanks. Ja ne! 


	3. Chapter 3

AN - All reviews help me make the fic better. And I got new ideas too. I had a hard time writing this. Let me know what you think, please. On with the story! R&R.  
  
Disclaimer - I don't own any part of Escaflowne, so don't come knocking on my door trying to sue me. lol  
  
Chapter 3  
  
Hitomi changed into the clothes that Folken had given to her after he left. Her outfit mainly consisted out of black.  
  
'I hate black. It's so boring.' Hitomi thought, pulling on her shirt while walking towards the bathroom.  
  
Inside she stood in front of the full length mirror that hung on a wall, examining herself in her new clothes. Tight leather pants, a loose black t- shirt and black buckle-up boots.  
  
Hitomi left her room and closed the door behind her. 'I must remember to clean up after dinner.' she thought as she walked down the dimly lit hall towards the stairs.  
  
When she was on the right floor, everyone around stopped what they were doing to look at the new girl on the Vione. Trying to pay no attention to all the stares she was getting, Hitomi started walking in the direction her pendant told her. Mentally dousing to find her way to the dinning hall.  
  
While she was walking Hitomi passed a little group of hand maids, whispering to each other.  
  
"That's the girl from the Mystic Moon."  
  
"I heard she's cursed."  
  
"Why did Lord Folken bring her back?"  
  
Hitomi smiled to herself when she was past them. She wasn't going to let some maids get the best of her.  
  
'I'll show them. When I know how to use my abilities I'll make sure they get scared.' Hitomi thought as she chuckled to her self.  
  
That was when Hitomi decided not to let people take advantage of her anymore. She decided to learn how to protect herself better by learning the Kalafae magic and to secretly practice her tai-Kwan-dow in her room, when she wasn't with Folken, to become physically stronger.  
  
Hitomi's pendant lead her to two twenty foot tall doors. Before she was about to enter, she heard yelling coming from inside the room.  
  
"Oh no." Hitomi whispered to her self upon recognizing Dilandau's voice.  
  
'No! I won't let him scare me. I'll be the only one to stand up to Dilandau, let's see what he does then.' Hitomi thought as she smiled to her self and pushed open the two huge doors.  
  
When she did, Dilandau stopped yelling and sent her an icy glare, which Hitomi ignored. Everyone else at the rectangular table turned to look at her too.  
  
"Ah Hitomi, I'm glad you could join us. Please, come sit down." Folken said, gesturing to the seat on his right.  
  
"She's eating with us too?! Folken, you can't be serious!" Dilandau yelled, standing up from his seat.  
  
Amused to see Dilandau getting angry over her, Hitomi walked over, smiling and head held high, towards her seat. Before seating herself, bowed before Folken, then sat down. Dilandau growled under his breath at the sight of Hitomi bowing, making him more pissed off, then sat back in his seat. But Hitomi's act of respect had the opposite affect on Folken's advisers, who were also seated at the table. They were impressed at her action and immediately took a liking to Hitomi.  
  
"Hitomi, did you have a difficult time finding the dinning hall?" Folken asked as the food was being served.  
  
"No, Lord Folken." Hitomi replied in a polite tone of voice. Dilandau grunted, which made HItomi's smile widen and made the boy next to her quietly chuckle to himself.  
  
"That's good." Folken continued, "Let me introduce every one here to you. Across from you is, as you probably already know, Dilandau, general of the Elite Dragon Slayers. As you know our original Slayers were sadly destroyed . . ."  
  
"By that asshole king of yours, Fannel!" Dilandau interrupted. Hitomi gave him a dirty look as Folken continued to talk.  
  
"As I was saying, we gathered new recruits and these two are our top soldiers, Trevor and Galli."  
  
Both boys nodded their "Hello's". Both looked younger than Hitomi. Trevor had short thick brown hair and green eyes and Galli had his head shaved and dark blue eyes. They were both wearing the Zaibochian armor. The boy beside Hitomi was wearing the same armor.  
  
"Chesta there beside you, is the only surviving original Slayer. Our soldiers found him, barely alive, when they were recovering the fallen Guymelefs." Folken said, smiling at the Slayer.  
  
Hitomi turned to look at Chesta, who gave her a welcoming smile. Hitomi gave a weak smile back before looking back to Folken. Hitomi felt a little awkward sitting next to one of the soldiers responsible for Fanalia's destruction.  
  
Folken introduced the other four older men as his advisers. All of them were brothers in their sixties with long white beards and no hair on their heads. They looked so alike that Hitomi couldn't tell them apart.  
  
When Folken was finished with his introductions, everyone started eating. But it was anything but a quiet meal. The Dragon Slayers were yelling and fighting over food while Folken and his advisers were having a discussion, yelling back and forth over the Slayers voices.  
  
Dilandau on the other hand, was staring at Hitomi while she ate. He never shifted his eyes from her. Once in a while Hitomi looked up and made eye contact with him. When she did, his fiery red eyes burned into her emerald eyes, forcing her to look away.  
  
'I have to learn to hold my gaze, other wise he'll think I'm afraid of him. And I don't want that to happen!' Hitomi thought sternly to herself.  
  
When everyone was finished eating and the servants had cleared the table, the advisers left the room to attend to their business and Trevor and Galli left as well. Hitomi also started walking to wards the doors leading to the hall, intending to go back to her room.  
  
"Hitomi, come here please." Folken called. Hitomi turned and walked in his direction, cursing under her breath to see Dilandau standing next to him along with Chesta.  
  
"Yes, Lord Folken?" Hitomi said in her polite voice which made Dilandau cringe.  
  
"Hitomi, I'd like you to go with Chesta. He will show you around the Vione, that way you will know where everything is."  
  
"But I know . . ." Hitomi started before being cut off by Dilandau.  
  
"You will listen to Lord Folken and do as he says!" Dilandau's booming voice startled Hitomi and made her jump. "Pathetic." He said with a smirk on his face.  
  
'Never jump at Dilandau's voice! Stupid!" Hitomi mentally slapped herself.  
  
"Lord Folken, I really don't think it's nessesary for Chesta to show me around. I found the dinning hall with no problems."  
  
"I think it would be better for you if some one showed you around, now go." And with that said, Folken left, leaving, Hitomi with Dilandau and Chesta.  
  
Hitomi watched as Folken left the room, then turned around to face the two guy she was with. 'Great! I'm stuck with a pyro maniac and his accomplis who tried to destroy Fanalia.' Hitomi thought as she looked at them.  
  
"Come Hitomi, I'll show you around the main floor." Chesta said in a surprisingly nice tone of voice. Hitomi cautiously followed Chesta out of the dinning hall, leaving Dilandau standing there, becoming more and more pissed off at the fact that Hitomi was staying on the Vione with them.  
  
Hitomi and Chesta walked down the hall quietly until they reached a door.  
  
"This is the recreation (rec) room, here is where soldiers and staff come to relax when they have nothing to do." Chesta said as he opened the door. Hitomi looked inside and saw lots of chairs, couches, tables and there was a fire place in the middle of the room.  
  
When she was done examining the room they left and continued on with the tour. Hitomi walked a few feet behind Chesta, feeling like she was being led down a hall that would never end. Finally, after walking in silence for a long while, they came to a large set of doors.  
  
"This is Lord Folken's study room. No one goes in here." Chesta said.  
  
"Lord Folken doesn't allow anyone in here?" Hitomi quietly asked, remembering Folken saying that she was allowed in when ever she pleased. She looked at the floor while speaking to Chesta.  
  
Because of the incident back on the Mystic Moon, Hitomi felt really vulnerable around Chesta and wanted to stay quiet around guys until she felt more secure, and to accomplish that Hitomi wanted to train herself.  
  
"It's not that we're not allowed, we just don't like going in here. And this door over here leads to the library." Chesta said as he walked to a door a few feet away from the study. "None of the soldiers like to read and the people who work don't have the time. So no one really uses it other than Lord Folken."  
  
After taking a quick peek inside Hitomi and Chesta continued down the hall.  
  
This time Chesta spoke. "So, why did Lord Folken summon you back from the Mystic Moon?"  
  
Remembering Folken telling her not to tell anyone about her being a Kalafae, Hitomi lied to him.  
  
"I don't know. He never told me."  
  
"You're still mad about Fanalia's destruction, aren't you?" Hitomi kept quiet and looked away. " I was just following orders. I want you to know that." Hitomi looked at him. She saw sincerity in his bright blue eyes, and she couldn't help but trust him a little.  
  
They stopped in front of the kitchen next.  
  
"Chesta, you just ate. You can't still be hungry." A man with a big belly, wearing a tall white hat and a white uniform said.  
  
"No Baldaro. I'm showing our guest, Hitomi, around." Chesta said, stepping aside so that the big man could see Hitomi.  
  
"Ah, my lady Hitomi. Welcome to my kitchen. I'm the head chef, Baldaro. If you are ever hungry in between meals and want something to eat, please don't hesitate to come and get something."  
  
"Thank you, Baldaro. Bye." Hitomi said as she left the bustling kitchen and caught up with Chesta who was already in the hall. Baldaro waved good-bye before continuing with his cooking.  
  
"He was nice." Hitomi said, a little more openly spoken, as she walked with Chesta down the curving hall.  
  
"Ya, he's nice, but I think he's a little nuts." Hitomi couldn't help but laugh a little at Chesta's remark. "That's the first time I've heard you laugh."  
  
"He may be a little nuts, but no one's as crazy as Dilandau." It was Chesta's turn to laugh this time.  
  
"Lord Dilandau isn't that bad once you get to know him. But if I were you I'd be careful around him. He isn't too thrilled about you being here."  
  
"Dilandau can yell at me all he wants, Lord Folken won't allow him or anyone else to hurt me."  
  
"If anyone does try to harm you, I'd like you to tell me. You're our guest and as our guest I have an obligation to protect you."  
  
"Thanks, Chesta."  
  
After a few moments they came to the last room on the main floor to show Hitomi.  
  
"This is the fitting room. I suggest you come here often for new clothing." Chesta said as he walked into the small room.  
  
"Hello, Chesta. How may I help you today?" A woman around her mid thirties greeted. She was a pretty woman with jet black hair and deep blue eyes. Hitomi sensed a friendly aura around her.  
  
"I'm just showing Hitomi around. Hitomi, this is Salle (AN - pronounced Sall-ay), our tailor." Chesta said.  
  
"Hello." Both Hitomi and Salle said at the same time, which made them giggle.  
  
"Yes, Lord Folken asked me to make some clothing for you, Lady Hitomi. I should be finished by tomorrow, I'll bring them by first thing in the morning." Salle said with a warm smile which made Hitomi feel more welcomed.  
  
"Thank you very much, Salle." Hitomi said, smiling back.  
  
"And if you want anything special, just ask, okay?"  
  
"Okay. Good bye."  
  
"Bye, milady. See you later, Chesta."  
  
Chesta waved as both of them left the room.  
  
"Are there lots of people on the Vione that are as friendly as Baldaro and Salle?" Hitomi asked Chesta.  
  
"Yes, except for Lord Dilandau, almost every one is friendly. If you ever need something, just ask some one. They will be more than happy to help."  
  
"Not everyone, I heard some maids whispering about me." Hitomi said as she followed Chesta into the main hall.  
  
"Were there tree of them?"  
  
"Ya?"  
  
"Pay no attention to them they just like to cause trouble. Those three work for Lord Dilandau."  
  
"He has his own hand maids?"  
  
"Ya, and what's really annoying is that they've picked up on some of his personality traits." Both of them laughed at Chesta's statement. "There's another floor below us, do you want me to show you around there?"  
  
Hitomi thought a moment before answering Chesta's question. She was begining to open up to him but she wasn't ready to meet the rest of the soldiers yet. She was able to sense their energy from them training, so she knew they were below.  
  
"No, I think I'd rather go back to my room now. Thanks for the tour."  
  
"Alright. I have to back to the barracks now anyways. I'll probably see you tomorrow." Chesta said as he turned to walk towards the stairs leading to the basement.  
  
"Chesta?" Hitomi was planning to ask Folken this tomorrow, but she figured that now was as good a time as any. Chesta turned to face Hitomi. "Is the war over?"  
  
"No, it's still going on. There's a pause going on right now."  
  
"What's a pause?"  
  
"It's where no one has made an attack for a while. All I know is that we are planning on attacking soon." After saying that, Chesta then continued to walk away. Hitomi stood in the hall for a moment.  
  
'I hope Van's alright. I'll ask Folken tomorrow if he knows.' Hitomi thought as she walked to the stairs leading to the upper floor.  
  
Upon reaching the top of the stairs Hitomi remembered that her room was still a mess from when she caused the wind storm earlier that evening. Muttering under her breath she entered her room and spent the next half hour cleaning and putting things back where they originally belonged.  
  
When she was finished she walked over and locked the door. Then she let exhaustion take her over and she sat on her bed and took off her boots and her tight pants. She was about to take her shirt off, when her hand accidentally rubbed against the cut on her stomach. Doing so caused great pain to surge through her body.  
  
Not being able to keep it in any more, she let it all out, her frustration, her fear, her pain, and cried her self to sleep. All of the bad images from the past three days haunting her dreams though out the entire night. And the face of the one boy who she saw before she passed out that day was the most frightening of them all.  
  
AN - So how was it? Is it a good or bad chapter? Please review and tell me how it was. Suggestions are always welcome, but please no flames. I know, this is a very long chapter. I hope you all like long chapters! I don't really know how long my chapters are going to be, I just basically know when I want them to end (if that makes any sense) I'll have the next chapter up soon. Until then, ja ne! 


	4. Chapter 4

AN - YAY!!! I finally got the fourth chapter up! I'm REALLY sorry for not updating sooner! I hope you can forgive me! It won't happen again, I promise. Well, here's the chapter you've all been waiting a long time for, I hope you all review!  
  
Disclaimer - I do not own Escaflowne or any of the original characters, but I do own the ones that I made up. So, no body better steel them! ^_^  
  
Chapter 4  
  
After a long night of tossing, turning and nightmares, Hitomi awoke with the rising of the sun. The sun's rays shining threw her balcony window and landing on her face. But something was tugging at Hitomi's mind when she awoke.  
  
'Something's not right.' Hitomi thought as she sat up. When she was in a sitting position she noticed what was wrong . . . she was five feet in the air above her bed. 'Oh no! This is not good. How am I supposed to get d . . .' In the middle of her thought, Hitomi fell.  
  
Letting out a short scream (but not so loud as to wake anyone up) she landed on her bed, but bounced off and fell to the ground with a soft thud. Getting up and rubbing her now sore butt, Hitomi walked to the door cursing to herself under her breath. 'Folken's first Kalafae lesson better be how to land!' Hitomi thought as she unlocked and opened the door to find that Salle kept her word by leaving her a large selection of clothes.  
  
Smiling, Hitomi picked up her clothing and kicked the door shut.. She placed the stack of clothes on her bed and began going threw it. Salle had made her four pairs of pants (three tight, one loose), three pairs of shorts, three skirts that go down to her knees and one that goes down to her ankles. All of either black or dark gray. For her tops she had two big loose sweaters (one black, one a navy blue color), five loose t-shirts (one red, two dark green, two black), three tank tops (one black, tow dark green) and four sleeveless tummy-tops (two black, two dark green). (AN- if you don't know, a tummy-top is a shirt that is high enough for your stomach to show) She also got socks and undergarments (no details nessesary, lol)  
  
Hitomi was quite pleased with the selection she got. She kept out a pair of loose pants and a dark green tummy-top, and put everything else in her dressers, which were almost full after everything was put away. She decided to hang up her two big sweaters in her closet.  
  
When Hitomi put on the clothes that she kept out, she found that everything fit her perfectly. 'I'll have to remember to thank Salle for the new clothes.' Hitomi thought as she looked herself over in the mirror. 'Now to start my workout.' She walked around her big room moving what little furniture she had off to the side, giving herself even more room to move around. Standing in the middle of her room, Hitomi started stretching her tense muscles. 'If I want to survive the life of Zaiboch I have to keep in shape. I also have to learn to protect myself.' Hitomi finished her stretches and started going through the basic kicks and punches of thai- kwon- dow.  
  
'If I can learn how to protect myself through tai-kwon-dow and my Kalafae abilities, no one will be able to stand up against me!' Thinking about getting stronger made Hitomi smile to herself. Getting more in to her workout, she imagined invisible enemies surrounding her. Hitomi fought with these enemies for two hours before being interrupted by a loud knock at her door. Coming back to reality, she realized how exhausted she was. 'That was some workout!' Hitomi smiled to herself as she walked over to open the door. But her smile immediately vanished when she saw who was on the other side.  
  
Dilandau was a bit shocked ar what he saw. He saw Hitomi, sweating and trying to catch her breath. "It looks like she just finished an intense training session with my Dragonslayers.' Dilandau thought as he looked at Hitomi. He looked into her deep green eyes, searching for some kind of answer so to why she looked the way she did. But found nothing, nor did she look away from his stare like the last time. This time she glared right back with a glint of a new fire in her eyes.  
  
Hitomi was getting annoyed with Dilandau just standing there staring at her, so she spoke up. "What would you like lord Dilandau?"  
  
"Lord Folken told me to inform you to come down for breakfast. How long have you been awake?" He asked, looking at her suspiciously.  
  
"Not that it's any of your business, but I've been up since dawn." Hitomi said with a smirk on her face.  
  
"What!? Why? I'm not even up that early!" Dilandau was practically yelling at Hitomi by now, but Hitomi stood her ground.  
  
"Why I'm up that early and why I look the way I do is none of your concern. Thank you Lord Dilandau, for informing me of breakfast. I'll be down when I'm finished washing up." With that, Hitomi closed the door on Dilandau and locked it before he had time to react.  
  
Dilandau stood there for a moment before walking away, mumbling to himself about Hitmoi being a disrespectful bitch.  
  
Back in Hitomi's room, Hitomi washed her face and combed her hair. She saw no reason in changing clothes since she will be training with Folken later that day anyways. Hitomi left her room and walked down the stairs, she was relieved when she didn't see Dilandau anywhere.  
  
'I'll probably be getting a lecture from Dilandau when I get to the dining hall. That's okay though.' Smiling again to herself, Hitomi continued walking down the hall.  
  
"Hitomi! Miss Hitomi!" Two voices called behind her.  
  
Turning around, Hitomi saw the two other Dragon Slayers from dinner the night before.  
  
"Trevor and Galli, right?" Hitomi asked, trying to remember all the names from last night.  
  
"That's right. We never really got to welcome you to Zaiboch at dinner last night." Trevor said.  
  
"Ya. May we escort you to the dining hall?" Galli asked in a really polite voice.  
  
"Sure." Hitomi replied.  
  
The three of them continued walking to the dining hall. Hitomi walked in the middle of the two boys, which made her feel really uncomfortable.  
  
"Galli and I told the other Slayers that we met you. Now all of them want to meet you. Do you want to come and meet them later today, Hitomi?" Trevor asked, looking at Hitomi.  
  
'Well, I can't avoid them forever. I might as well meet them, these two are nice enough. I'll ask Chesta to come with me.' Hitomi thought before answering. "Sure, I'll come down later on and meet everyone."  
  
"Great!" Both boys said at the same time, smiling.  
  
When the three of them entered the dining hall, Hitomi saw that everyone was already there.  
  
"It's about time you showed up." Dilandau said in an annoyed voice. As Hitomi took her seat next to Folken she gave Dilandau a dirty look. He smirked and continued to talk. "Lord Folken, I think she's up to something."  
  
"What do you mean Dilandau?" Folken asked and he looked from Dilandau to Hitomi.  
  
"I mean, I think she's trying out sneak out or something during the night."  
  
"I did not!" Hitomi yelled, her anger and power, rising due to Dilandau's remark. "Lord Folken I did not try to do anything of the sort! You have to believe me."  
  
"Hitomi, calm yourself." Folken said. Hitomi noticed his cape lightly flowing behind him from the breeze she was creating and took a deep breath to calm down. Luckily no one else noticed the gentle wind that was in the room for that brief moment.  
  
"Then why were you out of breath and sweating? And why did you say you were up since dawn?" Dilandau asked, his smirk now turning into a grin.  
  
Hitomi fell silent when everyone looked in her direction. 'I wanted this to be my secret.' She thought.  
  
"Hitomi?" Folken asked.  
  
Hitomi sighed, "If you absolutely must know, I was training myself. It's a form of fighting in me world called Tia-kwon-do."  
  
"I'm sure." Dilandau said in a sarcastic tone of voice, his grin vanishing and becoming disappointed that he couldn't get Hitomi in trouble.  
  
"That's very interesting, Hitomi." Folken said. "Well, now that we know Hitomi isn't sneaking out *glances at Dilandau*, let's eat." The servants then came in baring food. Everyone went in to the same routine as the nigh before.  
  
When Hitomi's plate was brought to her she didn't know what to do. 'I've never even seen most of this food before!' She thought as she poked at a jiggly brown blob, that no matter how much she poked at it, it did not seem to puncture.  
  
Chesta saw what Hitomi was doing and decided to say something before Dilandau noticed. "Hitomi?" She looked up at him. "Do you even know what that is?" He asked as he slightly chuckled to himself. Hitomi just shook her head. Chesta leaned towards her and whispered in her ear, "Roasted dragon eye. It's actually quite good." He then picked up his own with his hand and bit in to it.  
  
Hitomi's skin turned three shades of green before she covered her mouth with her hand and ran out of the dinning hall. Dilandau, who saw everything, burst out in to a fit of laughter. Chesta started laughing as well, turning everyone's attention towards them.  
  
"May I ask what is so funny? And what's wrong with Hitomi?" Folken asked.  
  
"She couldn't even handle a little dragon meat!" Dilandau said before laughing some more.  
  
Folken just smiled, 'She'll be back.' He thought as he continued to eat.  
  
Hitomi just made it to one of the public washrooms before everything she ate from the day before came back up. When she was feeling a bit better she started walking around the halls. 'How can anyone eat dragon eyeballs?! That's just gross!' She thought as she stopped in front of the kitchen door. 'I guess I'll ask Baldaro for some thing else to eat.' Hitomi opened the door. Since everyone was eating, the cooks were off duty right now.  
  
"Lady Hitomi, how may I help you today?" Baldaro asked, coming out from behind one of the stoves.  
  
"Umm . . . I would like some thing simple to eat." Hitomi answered, hoping the head chef wouldn't be offended by her asking for different food.  
  
"Ah, I see. Not quite comfortable with our food yet, m'lady?"  
  
"Not yet. I'm sorry."  
  
"That's quite all right. What would you like?"  
  
"Some fruit would be nice." Hitomi said with a smile. Baldaro walked over to a table and handed her a small bowl of fruit. "Thank you very much, Baldaro. I promise, I will get used to the food here in Zaiboch sooner or later. Bye."  
  
"Good bye."  
  
Hitomi left, carrying the fruit. 'I'll eat fruit any day over eye of dragon.' She thought, as she bit into the fruit which she had no idea what it was.  
  
'Much better.' She thought as she finished the last piece of fruit.  
  
"Good morning, m'lady." A maid said as she passed by.  
  
"Morning. Excuse me, but would you do me a favor?" Hitomi asked.  
  
"Of course. What would you like?"  
  
"Could you take the bowl back to the kitchen for me? I need to go see Lord Folken."  
  
"Sure."  
  
"Thank you." Hitomi said as she handed the bowl to the maid. The maid gave a small curtsy and left. Hitomi walked back to the dinning hall where she hoped Folken would be. When she entered, Folken was still there, but so was Dilandau. Everyone already left.  
  
"Welcome back, Hitomi. Are you feeling better?" Folken said with a smile.  
  
"Now I am." Out of the corner of her eye she could see Dilandau grinning from ear to ear.  
  
"Good. Follow me please." Folken said.  
  
All three of them walked in the halls before coming to a stair case that lead to the basement. The stair case seemed endless to Hitomi and she was actually getting bored. When they finally came to the bottom , Hitomi saw yet another long hallway.  
  
"Down here is where all of the soldiers train." Folken said as he and Dilandau started walking to the first door on their left.  
  
"In here is where all of the weapons that no one uses are kept." Dilandau said as he opened the door to reveal all of the various kinds of swords, glaives, axes and much more. Hitomi walked around the room examining everything. Never had she seen so many tools of destruction in one room. She stopped at one sword that looked like the same one that Van uses, except instead of the Fanalian emblem on the handle it had Zaiboch's. When Hitomi lifted the sword she noticed it wasn't as heavy as it looks.  
  
"Maybe if you're interested, Dilandau could teach you how to fight." Folken said. Hitomi looked over to see Dilandau's reaction to Folken's statement.  
  
"If she wants." Dilandau replied.  
  
"Maybe. Van taught me a little bit, so I know the basics." Hitomi said. "But if I start learning how to use a sword, it might be a bit much with my personal training sessions and . . ." Hitomi stopped herself before she continued to talk about her lessons with Folken. But Dilandau caught Hitomi.  
  
"And? What else are you up to girl?" He demanded. Hitomi looked over to Folken for help on what she had caused.  
  
"I'm going to be training her about some important matters. So she might not have time to learn the ways of swordsmanship." Folken replied in his usual calm manner.  
  
"Riiight." Dilandau said, rolling his eyes.  
  
'I'm getting really annoyed with his attitude.' Hitomi thought.  
  
"All right," Folken said, "Hitomi, put the sword away and follow me."  
  
Hitomi did as he said and walked with him and Dilandau further down the hall. All three of them walked in silence until they reached two more doors, one on each side of the hall. Dilandau was the one who explained what the door on the left was.  
  
"This is where I train my Dragon Slayers." Dilandau opened the door and walked in, not bothering to hold the door for Hitomi.  
  
Walking in, and after giving Dilandau a dirty look, Hitomi started wondering around the huge room. 'This is a good place to train. It's much bigger that my room.' Hitomi thought as she stopped in the middle of the room. The entire room was empty except for the four weapon holders placed at the far back wall. Mats covered the floor as well. 'So when some one's knocked out I'm guessing.'  
  
"All of the Slayers are in the rec room." Dilandau said, "Today is their day off."  
  
"Hitomi," Folken called from the door, "Let's begin your training."  
  
"In here?" Hitomi looked over at Dilandau, "What about him? He isn't watching is he?"  
  
"No," Folken reassured her, "We will be in the room across the hall. This way."  
  
Folken then left the room and went in to the other one. Dilandau followed him leaving Hitomi there for a second, then she entered the room where Folken was waiting for her. This room was three times as big as the Dragon Slayers' training room. It was completely empty except for a huge screen which looked like a television. But Hitomi knew that there were no such things on Gaia.  
  
"This room," Folken explained, "Is the room where I kept in contact with Lord Dornkirk before he died. Now I use it for special training."  
  
"I see. And this is where I will be training too?" Hitomi asked.  
  
"Yes." Folken then looked over to Dilandau. "Will you excuse us Dilandau? I will not be needing your assistance right now."  
  
"Can't I stay, Lord Folken? I think it would be best if I see what you will be teaching this girl. I would also like a good laugh." Dilandau said, looking at Hitomi with an evil grin.  
  
"No, Dilandau. It's time for you to leave." Folken said.  
  
"Fine." With his grin disappearing, Dilandau walked out of the room.  
  
"Well then, Hitomi. Shall we begin?"  
  
AN - Yay! I finally got this chapter up. Sorry for the delay, I've been busy with holiday stuff. I hope to have the next chapter up as soon as possible. Please bear with me, but I'm not capable with fast updates. But they do eventually get on. :P Ja ne! 


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